Gas quality and metering

Gas quality

Through its national gastransmissionsystemGTS is transporting, in separate transmission networks, two different qualities of gas: high-calorific gas (H-gas) and low-calorific gas (L-gas). A connected party (a final customer directly connected to the transmission network of GTS) receives gas of one of these two gasqualities. The specifications of these gases are laid down in annex 3 resp. 4 of the Regeling gaskwaliteit.

As a connected party, your equipment must be suited for natural gas with these specifications. In the annex 1B (exits) of the TSC, is noted to which ‘Gassysteem’ of the Regeling gaskwaliteit, your connection is attached. In this way, you can see which quality of gas is delivered to your connection.

Volume and quality measurements

The amount of energy that a connected party is withdrawing from the national gastransmissionsystem is determined. At the gas delivery station, the connection between the transmission system and the installation of the connected party, the volume of gas withdrawn is measured. The gas composition is measured further upstream of the gas delivery station. From the volume withdrawn and the gas composition (more specific the calorific value of the gas) the amount of energy is calculated.

The program responsible party or parties (the shipper) and the supplier(s) that are registered for an exit point to a final customer are informed about the gas flows over that exit point. These parties as well as GTS will use this data for their invoicing. The amount of energy needs to be determined correctly and accurately. The process to measure gas flows and gas quality, including the accuracy of the measurements, is described in the Meetcode Gas LNB. Every year GTS publishes an evaluation of the performance of its gas quality and volume determination process. The fiscal metering process applied by GTS is ISO-9001 certified.

FAQ

What sort of gas is available at my exit point at this moment?

In Gasport, under “Dispatching/Near real-time metering/Quality per run” details of gas composition are shown for every fifteen minutes. The calculated parameters such as Wobbe, density and calorific value are also shown here.
These values are determined by GTS on the basis of the gas quality system as set out in the Metering Conditions for Gas - NNO. A description of the current gas quality system can be found on this website. The consequence is that the value shown does not need to correspond every hour with the value of the gas made available at that moment. And so, for those reasons, the measurements reported are not suitable to be used for, for example, process control. These data are suitable for invoice control, however, provided they are not shown as being ‘unreliable’.

What sort of gas can I expect in the short term at my exit point?

This cannot be predicted exactly. Having said that, we have made a number of information services available for H-gas customers. These information services supply information about gas composition and/or flow duration in the network. Some services supply customer-specific information (for a specific connection point) and consequently require the connection points to be configured in a specific manner. After configuration, the information services can, in many situations, make valuable – near real time – predictions about gas compositions to be expected over the short term. More information can be obtained from the document “Gas Composition tracking for connected parties”.

What is the global flow situation in GTS’s H-gas transmission network?

what the current flow situation is in the H-gas transmission network for the Wobbe index, the Propane Equivalent (PE number) and the Methane number.

and what the forecast is for the expected H-gas composition of the Maasmond LNG influx into our transmission network.

What sort of gas can I expect in the future?

The composition of the natural gas being offered to the market in the Netherlands is gradually changing. The Dutch gas supply is declining and, as a result of this, producers and gas suppliers will be using more and more gas from other countries in Dutch networks. Gas is also becoming increasingly sustainable: consider developments in green gas. These developments have been launched by the government and will rapidly pick up pace over the coming years. By responding, in good time, to the situation concerning future gas supplies, we can ensure that our country links up smoothly with international gas supplies.

The effect on large-scale, industrial applications is different to that which it has on domestic customers’ equipment. On the site www.agentschap.nl you can find information about how you can prepare properly for the gas of the future and you will also find background information about the changing gas composition.

How can I see the relevant calibration certificates and the control results from the metering equipment installed at my exit point?

Gasport contains a “Historical/Offline metering/Request run information” page. Clicking on the “Send Information” button for each metering run causes an automatic request to be generated to send the relevant calibration certificates and control results to you, digitally, by email. This information will be in your possession by the following (working) day.